Hughes 269A N7054C

Summary

On 17 April 2005 at about 22:00 local time, a Hughes 269A registered N7054C was involved in an accident near Whitefish, Montana, United States. One person was on board and nobody was injured. The aircraft was substantially damaged. The NTSB has published a probable cause for this accident; it is quoted in full below.

Date

17 April 2005 at 22:00

Classification

Accident

Location

Whitefish, Montana, United States

Coordinates

48.4500, -114.4500

Aircraft

Hughes 269A

Registration

N7054C

Category

Helicopter

Engines

1

Operator

Not recorded

Operating rule

Part 91: General Aviation

Purpose of flight

Personal

Phase of flight

Not recorded

Route

Whitefish → Unknown

Aircraft damage

Substantial

Weather

VMC

Light

Day

NTSB number

SEA05CA083

Nobody was injured.

The student pilot's failure to maintain control of the helicopter while hovering resulting in an in-flight collision with terrain. Gusting winds and the student pilot's inadequate compensation for the wind conditions were contributing factors.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record. This site does not paraphrase or interpret it.

Read the full NTSB narrative

The student pilot reported that he had just purchased this helicopter and had accumulated a total flight time of four hours in this make and model. Total flight time in all aircraft was reported as 41 hours. The student pilot stated that he was practicing hovering and hovering turns into a 'sporadic" north wind. The student pilot reported that he made a turn to the south, and "while doing so a gust of wind spun me to the east (loss of tail rotor effectiveness)." The right skid contacted the surface and the helicopter tipped to the right side. The pilot reported no mechanical failures or malfunctions with the helicopter at the time of the accident.

Quoted verbatim from the NTSB record.